The Great Banned-Books Bake Sale

August 1, 2023
A districtwide book ban sparks a protest in this follow-up to The Arabic Quilt (2020). Kanzi, an Egyptian immigrant, and her classmates are dismayed to learn that a number of diverse stories--defined as "books showing people of many identities, backgrounds, and walks of life" --have been removed from their library and classrooms (oddly, these titles appear to have been confined to a single "diverse books" section). Not finding any books that reflect her identity, Kanzi retreats into her poetry notebook. A class discussion leads Kanzi to suggest a bake sale, with proceeds going to purchase banned books for the diverse community's Little Free Libraries. Later, as she and her grandmother Teita bake baklawa, Teita draws a connection between this protest and those she marched in during the 2011 Egyptian uprising, impressing on Kanzi the need to raise her voice. The book takes on an all-too-relevant topic--indeed, the author's note discusses how this tale was inspired by a real-life attempt at banning The Arabic Quilt in 2021. However, it suffers from rushed pacing and didactic writing. It's not clear why the ban is reversed so quickly or why the books were removed to begin with. The librarian's explanation that "some books are so powerful that they intimidate people" is a misguided statement at odds with the story's message that books centering marginalized identities are especially being targeted. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A well-meaning effort at exploring censorship that doesn't quite hit the mark. (recipe) (Picture book. 7-10)

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September 11, 2023
Per an author’s note, Khalil and Semirdzhyan respond to a Pennsylvania school district’s 2021 banning of their previous collaboration, The Arabic Quilt, with this empathic, text-heavy follow-up. When “the new diverse books” in the school library are removed from circulation, Kanzi, who is of Egyptian descent, and classmates, portrayed with various skin tones, react with shock and dismay. Asked why anyone would ban books, Ms. Jackson answers, “Some books are so powerful that they intimidate people.” While the creators fully explore the range of emotions the protagonist experiences in response to the books’ removal (“She walks a little slower, a little smaller”), they also highlight concrete actions that empower the child. In sketches washed in earthy hues, Kanzi journals, talks to her Teita about protests in Tahrir Square, and helps coordinate a protest and bake sale for the purchase of books for Little Free Libraries. It’s a motivating title whose concluding triumph underlines the idea that “our voices are important!” An author’s note and recipe conclude. Ages 7–10.

July 1, 2023
Kanzi (the Arabic-speaking Egyptian girl whose potholed transition to life in America was portrayed in The Arabic Quilt) feels marginalized when her school's library is denuded of books that reflect the experiences and perspectives of underrepresented groups. Adult characters scaffold a discussion with the kids about the current book banning movement (some readers might find the school librarian's explanation for the bans simplistic). Kanzi proposes a school-wide protest-slash-bake-sale that sees her using her voice for change, raises money to buy books to donate to Little Free Libraries, gains local attention, and occasions a book ban reversal. Digital illustrations incorporating Arabic text add to the instructiveness of a story put into context by an author's note.

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)